Classical science students gain valuable knowledge of ecosystem

LYNN – With its urban center and miles of paved state roads winding through heavily settled neighborhoods, conservation areas are not always easy to come by in Lynn. But nestled between some new houses and old railroad tracks, where the Saugus River meets the Atlantic Ocean, is an important stretch of ecological real estate.It may look like a field of thick grass or a wasteland of mud to the casual observer, but the Marsh view Park Salt Marsh off of Boston Street on the Saugus line is a vital piece of the area’s ecosystem, and it is crawling with life.Now, thanks to the science department at Classical High School, marine biology students are beginning to utilize this valuable resource to learn how to protect the environment around them, and foster a real-world understanding of the lessons learned in the classroom.Classical Marine Biology Teacher David Winchester is a marine biologist in every definition of the title. Working with the New England Aquarium in Boston and other private aquariums across the state for over a decade, the Lynn native has been studying the region’s aquatic make-up for most of his adult life.Two years ago he came to Classical with the idea of giving back to his hometown as a teacher, and has taken what was once a one-time walking field trip to the marsh to a yearlong field study of the marsh and its surroundings.Students take water samples, bird watch and catch shell fish – all of which are brought back to the classroom for further study. The area possesses such a variety of living organisms; Winchester and his colleagues Jeff Grove, Andrew Creamer and Amanda Curtis, are able to tie in nearly every textbook lesson to the marsh.”The best is when we can go at low tide, there are shrimp and crabs to collect, we take plant samples and go bird watching,” Winchester said. “The school has been going down there informally for a while, but I wanted to take it up to the next notch. There are some weeks in the spring when my classes went every day.”Because of the warm weather this week, Winchester was able to take his class to the marsh on Tuesday at high tide. The class has set up three main research points along an old General Electric rail line to sample water and search under bridges for organisms. They study the areas and use classroom technology to keep data on any changes or new life forms that they may find.”When I first bring them to the salt marsh it is kind of a let down because it looks like it is just mud and grass,” he said. “In marine biology there are a lot of sexy topics like coral reef or the rainforest, but the salt marsh is so important to the New England region.”Along with serving as a home for many small fish and organisms, the marshes also sustain shore birds, which use the muddy surface as a sort of rest stop during migration. The birds feed on the worms and small bugs in the mud, and will sometimes use surrounding areas to lay eggs.The grassy covering acts as a natural form of nutrients and protection, filtering out mud and toxins in the summer when it is alive, and sinking into the surface, providing nutrients after it dies.While the project is an easy way to keep students interested in his class, and do some of his own research as well, Winchester says the overall goal is to get the students thinking about conservation and protecting areas like this in he future.”Ultimately, I want them to care enough about the conservation issues to want to care wherever they are,” Winchester said. “There is this belief that kids tend to get down hearing all of these negative things on the news and in the world. If that is all they hear then a lot of kids end up feeling helpless, like ‘why should I even try?’ The strategy is if you teach people about things ultimately they will start to care about them. If they care they will want to learn more about it.”Winchester is hoping that the research his classes do this year and in the future will result in something much more, and he has already started puttin